You would think that it’s only the aging parents / grandparents who will be needing care in the near future. Think again, as you may one day find your grandchildren knocking at your door, ready to be taken in. Mind you, this is not uncommon as many grandparents find their just abandoned nest be filled again with toddlers and barely teens, i.e their grandkids. In lawmen’s term, you are now the kinship caregivers.
There are many factors why your situation may end up like this some day but of course, the main reason would be the incapacity of the birth parents to care for their kids. If and when the law sees the birth parents to be inadequate to care for their young ones, it will then assign or appoint a home and a person to care for the kids. Naturally, the grandparents would be the next of kin.
Kinship care can work in two ways. One would be the informal arrangement between the parents and the grandparents wherein the kids will be left in the grandparents’ care with the parents’ acknowledgement and consent, the other one involves the government’s child welfare system. However, kinship care is not limited to the grandparents only as it can also be the kids’ aunts and uncles, and even their adult sisters and brothers, if they are already capable of raising their siblings. To qualify for kinship care, the grandparents’ must prove that they will be able to give the kids’ a home which is permanent and secure. Of course, the kids’ well-being should come first in situations like this.
As grandparents, you can also apply for kinship care if you feel your grandchildren are, in any way, neglected, abused or not being brought up the right way. You may call your child welfare authorities so a caseworker will be assigned to observe your case and take in effect necessary actions. The benefit of having a caseworker work with you is that the system will provide you the necessary support and supervision in raising your grandchildren. If there is a threat to the life of your young ones, then the system will also make sure they get proper protection. They will also be the ones to plan long term solution for your grandkid’s situation. As the caregiver, you should ask your legal rights over the child as sometimes the system will just appoint you as a temporary caregiver, if you would like to request permanent kinship care, make sure that the court appoints you as such.
Included in services offered by child welfare agency are therapy and counseling, financial support, if and when the need arises, and in some cases payment incentives for caregiving. Some countries offer health insurances and respite care services for kinship care to help you with your personal needs.
